Modeling clay, PLAY-DOH, plasticene, and various other colored plastic materials are well-known. Such plastic materials have commonly been used by children in their play activities. Children typically use their hands to fashion such plastic materials into a wide variety of desirable shapes, i.e., animals, houses, cars, flowers, etc. Different colors of plastic material may be utilized to form the various portions of such items so as to resemble their real counterparts or the colors may be utilized otherwise, as desired, i.e., to form fanciful designs, etc.
For example, green plastic material could be used to form the stalks and leaves of a flower and blue, red, or yellow plastic material used to form the petals thereof. Thus, a child can mold the plastic material so as to form a wide variety of items or artistic designs, as desired.
Various devices for shaping, forming, or molding such plastic materials are also known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,569,815 issued on Feb. 11, 1986 to Rentz et al. and entitled METHOD AND DEVICE FOR SIMULTANEOUSLY PROPELLING AND FORMING IMPRESSIONS WITH A FLOWABLE MATERIAL discloses a toy for extruding and molding various predetermined shapes of PLAY-DOH or the like. In the Rentz device, a lever moves a piston to force the PLAY-DOH or other plastic material either through an extrusion mold or into a mold cavity, so as to form the desired shapes.
It is also known to form artworks utilizing plastic materials. One example of a device utilized to form such artworks is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,496,510 issued on Jan. 29, 1985 to Hanson et al. and entitled ACTIVITY TOY. With the Hanson device, the user may create needlecraft-like textured designs using a plastic material. Strands of the plastic material supported on a screen simulate the stands or nubs of needlecraft designs. An extruder is positioned adjacent the rear surface of the screen and moved along the screen so as to force plastic material through the screen mesh and thereby create the needlecraft-like texture thereupon.
Although such toys have proven generally suitable for their intended purposes, they possess inherent deficiencies which detract from their overall utility. More particularly, crafts and artworks formed by hand, or by utilizing the Rentz, Hanson, or other such devices, are subject to deterioration and degradation, particularly that caused by handling and exposure to the elements, i.e., dust, dirt, moisture, etc.
The plastic materials utilized in forming such crafts and artworks are typically soft and pliable. The resulting crafts and artworks are therefore subject to being broken and/or deformed during handling subsequent to the formation process.
The plastic materials commonly utilized to form such crafts and artworks are also particularly susceptible to soiling since dust, dirt, etc., coming into contact therewith typically adheres thereto and becomes embedded therein.
Such degradation, deformation, breakage, and/or soiling prevents crafts and artworks formed from such plastic materials from being enjoyed for extended periods of time. As such, although the prior art has recognized to a limited extent the problem of forming crafts and artworks from such plastic materials, the proposed solutions have, to date, been ineffective in providing a satisfactory remedy.